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Severely burned porcupine is on the mend at WSU College of Veterinary Medicine

PULLMAN, WA - Most Washington State University patrons are spending some time away from campus during their Winter Break, but that’s not the case for some of the doctors and students at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital.

Reporter Rachel Dubrovin tells us about a couple of the unique patients that are being nursed back to health this holiday season.

It's Christmas Eve on the Washington State University campus, and things are pretty silent. But, there are quite a few creatures stirring at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital.

"He's a Lamancha mix, so Lamancha is an earless goat and he's very large because he's mixed with an alpine," said WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital Large Animal Internal Medicine Resident Melissa Ackerman.

Fred the goat was recently booked into the hospital with a life threatening illness.

"Fred came in with urinary stones and he wasn't able to urinate, so we relieved the blockage," said Ackerman.

Ackerman said luckily, the vets were able to treat Fred without any invasive surgery, and now he's on the road to recovery. Ackerman said she's looking forward to watching him go home healthy in a few days.

"That's why I do this job, it's the best part of the job," said Ackerman.